Cyclops. Crucifixion.

In the Cyclops, I think there is a danger for the reader to fall in to looking at this episode with ‘one eye’. Here, we see Joyce make a mockery out of Irish nationalists, the hero, religion, journalism, etc, creating what the Bloomsday book calls, an “inflated caricature,” of all the aforementioned. The unnamed one-eyed narrator is put in juxtaposition to Bloom’s cod’s eye, who can see things both ways: (But don’t you see, on the other hand. (306). Therefore, beneath Joyce’s outward mockery, the wasteland / fisher king theme expands dramatically.
Bloom stands outside the tavern where the citizen, our narrator, and a few other men drink. Bob Doran, the drunk, swears that he has just seen Dignam, whom we all know is dead. The tone shifts from somewhat playful to macabre, when Alf says, “Dead! He is no more dead then you are” (31), which evokes the feeling that these men are actually somewhere between heaven and hell, such as purgatory. This is brought home in the hilarious mockery of different religion’s take on the afterlife, however, as I said before, despite the overwhelming humor of the episode, it cannot be simplified to humor alone. It is a parody, yet evocation of the afterlife.
Bloom lurks on the other side of the veil of the underworld (metaphorically speaking). “There he is again, says the citizen, staring out” (302). Finally, “Bloom slopes in with his cod’s eye (God’s eye) on the dog…” (There is an obvious connection with Stephen’s dogsbody, the Proteus episode where Stephen sees one live dog fondling the dead one, etc..) Our hero seems to finally have stepped into the underworld.
Themes of surplus (parody of Irish revival of Irish poetry etc in beginning) / barren land (313,314) / usurpation, (thievery, Bloom’s Freudian slip, England of Ireland) and martyrdom recur in the Cyclops. Soon after Bloom enters, we are told of a hanging. Then, Christ’s crucifixion is alluded to, as well as the necessity of Christ to then, descend into hell before he can ascend to heaven: “Here, says he, take them to hell out of my sight.”
The conversation takes a turn to express the idea that when a man is hanged, he achieves an erection, which further correlates the metaphoric necessity for Bloom to be crucified in order to rid himself of impotence.
We also see Bloom, for what I assume is the first time, directly speaking of Blazes Boylan. Also, in the end, when the drunken man cries out, “Three cheers for Israel” Bloom actually retorts: “Mendelssohn was a Jew and Karl Marx and Mercadante and Spinoza. And the Savior was a Jew and his father was a Jew. Your God” (342).
Finally, the moment that I have been waiting for has happened: Bloom is crucified. I know this isn’t literally, but it undoubtedly happens. We see the religious procession, where a silver casket is being carried though the streets. Then, in Hungarian, we hear shouts of “See you again my dear friend. See you again!” which alludes to Bloom being the one in the coffin, and also the resurrection. “And there came a voice out of heaven, calling: Elijah! Elijah! And he answered with a main cry: Abba Adonai! And they beheld Him even Him, ben Bloom Elijah…” (345). (Earlier in the chapter Bloom is likened to the messiah numerous times).
Does this mean that Bloom’s impotence is lifted? How will this impact the wasteland? Does this bring God back into it? Will the body be recovered from the waters? Will Mrs. Purefoy finally birth that baby? Please join us next time on Days of Our Lives.

P.S If anyone has a better understanding of the wasteland / fisher king please speak up and help me try to work this out.